Tooth Brush Survival
by 
Ken Bushnell

   When the final breakdown in society happens you'll 
want to be prepared with a lot of little tips and tricks 
that can save your life. One of those little things that 
we've gotten so used to that won't be available in a 
nuclear winter is light. Especially at night so you'll 
want to be able to turn your toothbrush into a 
flashlight.
   Step one is to go to the store and get some 
batteries. They're usually right there next to the 
flashlights. Step two is to get some tape and wire. Any 
old wire will do as long as you can tape it. And oh yea. 
It's nice if you can cut it, so don't get the real thick 
stuff.
   Once home see if you can find a flashlight bulb 
someplace, maybe in a junk drawer or a tool box. It 
seems like we're always buying those spare light bulbs 
and misplacing them so that when our flashlight does 
burn out, we can't use it because we can't find the 
spare bulbs. All the more reason to be prepared and know 
how to turn your flashlight into a toothbrush. Whoops! 
Did I get that wrong. I meant turn your toothbrush into 
a flashlight. Wouldn't that be awkward the other way 
around.
   So any who, if you can't find the spare bulbs take 
one out of a flashlight you might have lying around. 
Most households have dozens of them they never use.
   Next you'll want to make a battery holder. I usually 
just tape the batteries right to the tooth brush. You'll 
need two (batteries, not tooth brushes). Next cut some 
wire and make it long enough in case you have to find an 
alternative power source when your batteries run out. So 
tape one end of the wire to the flat side of one of the 
batteries and leave the other end loose.
   Here I usually tape a second piece of wire to the 
side of the light bulb. Then I cut another piece of wire 
and tape it to the pointy end of one of the batteries. 
You can use a loop and splice one of the wires into it. 
Then just touch the light bulb to one of the batteries 
and wala ... Light!
   If it doesn't work you might need to touch the two 
ends of the batteries together.
   Another trick is to take the wire and strike it 
against one of the terminals on your car battery while 
resting the other end onto something metal on the car. 
The resultant flash of light will be an explosion as the 
batteries that were on the toothbrush blew up. The light 
you now see, then, will be referred to as a blinding 
light and it'll go away, but wasn't it nice to be 
reminded, briefly, what having light was like in the 
dark.
   One other thing you might find useful is using your 
flashlight-toothbrush as a weapon. If you are attacked 
by a bear, or some other wild animal, just throw it at 
them, and the weight of the batteries will impact the 
animal, dazing them just long enough for you to get 
away.
   Remember; survival is for the clever. Good luck and 
happy camping.


THE END
copyright 2010 Ken Bushnell
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